


The Anomaly of Captain Alex Hawthorne

by ThatForestPrince



Series: The Outer Worlds [2]
Category: The Outer Worlds (Video Game)
Genre: First Meetings, Gay Rights, Kinda, M/M, Slow Burn, felix isn't as stupid as people write him as and i will stand by that, idk what else to tag this as
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:21:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28774497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatForestPrince/pseuds/ThatForestPrince
Summary: Felix couldn't believe he'd done that. He'd knocked out his foreman with a tossball stick. What would he do now?
Relationships: Male Captain/Felix Millstone, The Captain/Felix Millstone
Series: The Outer Worlds [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109609
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	The Anomaly of Captain Alex Hawthorne

**Author's Note:**

> I did not expect to get this first chapter out so quick and I have no idea how I've managed to write so much lately. I hope you guys enjoy this long twisting story about my shady captain. 
> 
> No context needed! I'm going to try to stick to canon as much as possible, but it will naturally diverge in some places. (edit 1/18/20: nvm I have an Idea.)
> 
> Pictures of my captain: https://thatforestprince.tumblr.com/post/634135961194856448/thatforestprince-thatforestprince-gays-come-get

Felix still couldn't believe he'd done that. Knocked a man out with a tossball stick and then quit. He tried to calm himself down and ignore his pounding heart. The foreman deserved it, but he didn't have a job anymore. What would he do after this?

He was distracted from his spiraling thoughts as he watched a ship he'd never seen before pull into the docking bays. It was a small, beat up thing that creaked like it was about to explode as it landed. It only served to worsen his anxiety.

_ "Hey!" _

He jumped about a foot in the air and looked to see a corporate trooper approaching with a mardet following close behind. Uh oh. 

"That's him!"

Felix crossed his arms, trying to seem calm about it as the mardet spoke. "He doesn't even work here anymore."

"That's not the point! This halfwit just knocked out one of my workers-" 

"Yeah, with a tossball stick. I heard you the first time. There weren't any witnesses." At least this lady was on his side. 

"No witnesses? He's not even denying it!" 

"Jackass had it coming." Shit. He shouldn't have said that. 

"Shut it, Felix. You're not making this any better." Definitely shouldn't have said that.

"You get cute with me again, you little Back Bay brat, and I will toss you out an airlock." This was when he noticed the man watching them. He was decently tall, had black hair with dark purple highlights, and wore heavy troop armor. How big were his god damn thighs? He was watching them with an innocently curious look on his face. He was pretty…

"This is the Groundbreaker, not Byzantium. You ain't the law here. I am. Now move along." Oh yeah, someone had been yelling at him.

"I don't have time for this, I need a drink…" He watched as the corporate trooper stalked off, visibly enraged at how things had turned out.

That was when the man approached him, and Felix got a better look at him. Oh he was  _ very _ pretty. His hair was curly and off to one side and his face was sprinkled nicely in freckles. His eyes were a dark grey and he had a big scar across the left side of his face that only helped to add to his mystery. Be cool, Felix. You got this. "Going for a stroll around the docking bays?"

He smiled a brilliant smile before asking genuinely. "Were you in an argument?" 

His voice had a strange… metallic quality to it that was barely noticeable. It brought him back to when he was younger when another stranger had come to the Groundbreaker and told him about his "translator" over a few drinks. Maybe this man had the same thing? 

"Sure was. Got a knack for upsetting the Board and the Mardets all at once. Between you and me, I was hoping they'd come to fisticuffs." He might as well be earnest, since he didn't have a job anymore.

The man chuckled softly, a wonderful noise, before speaking again. "So what's your side of the story?" 

Felix huffed, thinking back to the sequence of events. "I had this foreman, right? Guy never liked me. Always trying to get a ride out of me. But I keep my chin up, right? Be the bigger man, I tell myself.

He's a Spacer's Chosen man, though. So when the Chosen beat my Rangers the other night, my foreman comes swaggering up with his head full of boasting." He couldn't help the anger dripping into his tone.

"That's when you resolved your differences like an adult, right?"

"That's when I broadsided him with a tossball stick, yeah." Felix crossed his arms a little tighter, expecting to be judged. "Look, this was a long time coming. Guy thinks he can push me around 'cause he's some sky-high foreman and I'm just a Back Bays dockworker?" 

Oh yeah…. "Well. Former dockworker. Guess I just tendered my resignation.." 

But the man wasn't judging him, in fact he even looked to be sympathetic to him. He asked, his voice soft. "Got any plans?" 

"Enjoy my freedom. Scrounge together enough bits for a Zero Gee. Other than that? Can't say as I do." Oh no that made the man even more sympathetic, he was even frowning now. Change the subject. "Hey, not for nothing, but I saw you wander out of that ship over there by the dock. Wouldn't happen to be yours would it?" 

This question brought a smile back to the man's face, and it was a proud one at that. "That's me. Captain of the Unreliable." 

Holy fuck that was cool. "Captain of the Unreliable. You're like something out of a serial drama."

Way too cool to be talking to him. "Hey, I don't want to talk your ears off. Guessing you got places to be, I appreciate your time." 

The man tilted his a little and looked him over. "I never caught your name. I'm Alex. Alex Hawthorne." 

Fuck that was also cool. How was one man so cool? Wait, was he flirting? "Felix Millstone. Pleased to make your acquaintance." 

Alex smiled brightly at him and gave him a little two-fingered salute. "See you around, Felix." 

"See you around, boss." Did he just call him boss? Wow he was in over his head talking to this guy. 

Felix watched as Alex walked off towards customs with two people following after him. Wait, had he had people with him? He hadn't even noticed. 

It wasn't until hours later that the "Unreliable" had been flagged and impounded by the Board. And that this "Alex" might be a friend of Udom Bedford. So much for his thoughts of joining them, if they were getting friendly with the Board.

It wasn't until the next day that he heard the Unreliable was let free and about Udom acting weird, crying randomly and acting depressed… Okay then. Apparently this Alex was going around helping people on the Groundbreaker and hanging out with Gladys . If he was friends with the Board, why would he be helping people and talking to  _ Gladys? _

Maybe he should join them after all. It might be his only choice anyway… He was running out of bits fast.

Before he knew it, all his belongings were piled up outside of the Unreliable and he was standing there waiting for Alex to come back. The chance to work for someone like Alex, even if he was working with the Board, was too good to ignore. 

It was a little while before Alex returned, now with a helmet over his head. He took it off as he approached, revealing his confused and curious expression. Before he could ask, Felix spoke first. "Hey, you got a second?" 

Alex nodded and put the helmet under the crook of his arm. His companions watched on with more caution than him.

"Gotta hand it to you, boss. That's a fine-looking ship. Only thing it's missing is me." Yeah, that seemed like a good starter. Gotta be confident.

The other man raised one eyebrow, looking amused and still curious. "You're pretty eager to throw in with somebody you barely know." 

Keep the confidence, Felix. "Yes. I absolutely am. Just give me a shot. That's all I'm asking. I could be the best damn crew you ever hired." 

Alex huffed a laugh and shot a look to his companions to gauge their reactions. While the man (who was wearing OSI vestments… okay.) seemed offended that they were even talking to him, the woman gave her captain an encouraging nod. "Okay, Felix. Consider this your interview." 

He was actually giving him a chance? Holy shit. "You're serious? You're giving me a shot? All right. Hang on, hang on."

He pulled the speech he'd written out of his pocket, which pulled a chuckle out of Alex. "I put together a little speech, just in case you asked.

Hey there, I'm Felix Millstone. I have prepared a list of reasons why I believe you should hire me to join the crew of your ship and/or outlaw gang." 

Alex smirked at him and gave a nod. "Go on." 

This was a good sign. "Firstly, I am highly personable and I get along well with anyone who is not of the jackass persuasion." 

The woman giggled at his words. "Sorry, he's funny!" 

Still not bad signs, he continued. "Secondly, I can be counted on in the event of a firefight, standoff, and/or raid. My motto is - if you need a steady gunhand, I'm your man."

Ouch. That sounded even worse out loud. "That motto is… a work in progress." 

Alex held up a hand to stop him. Uh oh. "I've heard enough, you're hired." 

Holy fuck. He had a job again. He had a place to stay. He didn't have to stay on the Groundbreaker anymore. "Wow. You don't know how long I've been waiting to hear that… Thanks, boss. You're not gonna regret this." 

Alex smiled and his eyes seemed to sparkle. "Come on, Felix. Let me show you around your new home." 

Felix couldn't believe his luck. He could leave the Groundbreaker. He had a stable job. Wow.


End file.
